


Extracurriculars

by TinCanTelephone



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Teachers, Awkwardness, Chemistry demos, Explosions, F/M, Fluff, Slow Dancing, Valentine's Day, cuteness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2018-02-15
Packaged: 2019-03-18 20:17:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13689051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TinCanTelephone/pseuds/TinCanTelephone
Summary: Cassian's lost track of how long he's wanted to ask Jyn on a date. So when he finally resolves to do it, of course everything that can go wrong, does.Featuring salty Kay, Bodhi the cinnamon roll, and a white stuffed bear.





	Extracurriculars

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wintersend](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wintersend/gifts).



> Original Title: Explosion Wednesday
> 
>    
> Gift for [captainandors](http://captainandors.tumblr.com/) on tumblr for the RebelCaptain Secret Valentine's Exchange! Sorry this is a little late <3
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks a million to betas @literatiruinedme and @deadpanprincess!!!

For the first time in his life, Cassian Andor wishes Jyn Erso would go the fuck away. It's not that he doesn't _want_ to see her. If he's being very honest with himself, he kind of always wants to see her, but it's incredibly bad timing to run into her in the CVS parking lot when he's on this particular errand.

He glares at his boots as they walk across the parking lot and tries to listen as she bitches about school– homework she has to grade, the next unit test she has to write. 

She groans dramatically as soon as they enter the store, decked out in hearts and cupids for Valentine's day. "This is why I hate the drugstore."

He raises an eyebrow. "Because of the seasonal decorations?"

She sniffs and picks disdainfully at a display of stuffed giraffes with hearts tied around their necks that say _Cutie Pie_. "It's not even February. Besides, Valentine's Day was invented by Hallmark to sell cards. Everyone knows that."

He gives her a look. "St. Valentine's day is an ancient Christian feast day commemorating Valentine of Terni, who was martyred in Rome in 273."

She stops and looks at him, eyes narrow. "You did not just pull that out of your ass."

He maintains a poker face for a good five seconds before he gives in. "Fine. I looked it up for my fun fact of the day on the 14th."

"God what _is_ teaching history," she mutters.

He ignores her and keeps walking, hoping she'll peel off at some point to go find whatever she's here to buy.

Of course, that would be too easy. "So are you arguing this is a _religious_ holiday?"

He hedges. "Maybe for some people."

"But for _you_? Are you even Christian?"

He huffs. "I was baptized. I had a first communion and a confirmation."

She seems surprised, but doesn't let it go. "When was the last time you went to a service?"

"Irrelevant." He turns a corner. To his dismay, Jyn continues to follow him and her jaw drops when she sees what aisle they're in.

"No way."

"Shut up."

"Cassian Andor, are you buying someone a _valentine_?"

He crosses his arms and hunches his shoulders, hoping his scarf will cover some of the redness that's beginning to creep up his neck. Jyn's comments about church are coming back to him and he wonders if this is God's way of punishing his lapsed Catholic soul.

Jyn sidles up beside him and puts her chin on his shoulder. She has to pull him down a bit to reach, and he lets her because of course he does. The casual contact, which would be distracting at the best of times, seems to cause every nerve on his right side to light up and the thoughts in his head become a mess of static.

"Tell me, Cassian," she says. "Who is she?" She thinks about it. "Or he?"

He has to step away before he can answer. "She. And none of your business."

She frowns– a cute, pouty frown– and pokes at the white stuffed bears lining the shelves. "What're you going to get her?"

"I'm not sure yet." He holds up one of the bears. They're each holding a red plush heart with a slogan stitched in white cursive. "I was thinking… just, 'Happy Valentine's Day.'"

She makes a face. "That's so generic."

"They're all generic."

"No, I mean… it's not personal enough. Like, you can say 'Happy Valentine's Day' to anyone."

He thinks about it. "Well, which one would you want to get?" Maybe running into her wasn't such a bad thing after all.

She snorts. "Like anyone would get _me_ a Valentine."

It's an utterly ridiculous statement he feels too clumsy to correct right now. "Hypothetically, though."

She narrows her eyes and peers at the options. "Well, 'I love you' is probably too much, if you're not dating her yet…" She glances up.

"I'm not."

"And just 'Hugs' seems too cutesy, like you're making a joke."

"Right." It's a very odd experience for him, to have this conversation with Jyn. It's like she's talking about herself in the third person, but doesn't know it.

"'Kiss Me' is kind of aggressive…"

He starts fiddling with his gloves. Maybe she doesn't like any of these. Maybe he should just get her something different. But what would that be? And how would he ask her without being totally obvious?

"'Be Mine,'" she says, holding the bear in his face.

He jumps and nearly chokes at the thought of her saying that to him, before taking the bear and turning it over in his hands.

"Nice and simple, but still sweet," she says.

 _Does that mean she likes it?_ "It does seem to strike that balance."

There's an awkward silence.

Then Jyn reaches out and pats him on the arm. "Don't be nervous, Cassian. I'm sure she'll love it."

He's so surprised he almost forgets himself and says, _But will you?_ He opens his mouth to say literally anything else, but nothing comes out and he ends up clearing his throat.

She smiles and shakes her head. "You're cute with a crush." She turns and makes her way to the back of the store. "Meet you at the registers. That prescription isn't going to pick up itself."

Cassian swallows and tries not to have a panic attack.

 

* * *

 

Really, he should blame this whole thing on Kay. Back on New Year's Eve, they stayed up at his house to hate-watch the ridiculous TV special and Cassian, in hindsight, may have hit the champagne a little too hard. (In his defense, it was the real stuff from France, a gift from Kay's distant but well-off relatives.)

It led him to declare, with rather a lot of ceremony, that as his new year's resolution, he was going to finally ask Jyn Erso on a date.

"You know," Kay said, teetering on the edge of drunk himself. "Only 8% of people actually keep their resolutions."

"Well, this year that's gonna be me." Cassian put his empty flute down on the edge of the table, where it promptly crashed to the floor just as the clock struck midnight.

Kay snorted. "An auspicious beginning."

"You'll see," Cassian said as he sprawled onto the sofa. "This year, I'm gonna do it."

"Your words would hold far more weight if you hadn't said the exact same thing last year, and the year before," said Kay.

Cassian felt his eyelids drooping. "You're wrong," he said. "I'll bet you… fifty bucks."

"I'll give you a hundred if you pull it off by Valentine's Day."

 

Six weeks later, Cassian has nine days until the 14th and he's no closer to asking Jyn on a date than he was two years ago, when she first began at Yavin High. Kay remarked she seemed kind of impulsive to be teaching chemistry, but Cassian thought she was brilliant.

He only saw her in action once or twice, but the students raved about her and he's seen her talk about her work. She'll complain about standardized testing and grade inflation and the limitations of graded homework, but she truly, genuinely loves what she does and he's always admired that.

He's been trying to pinpoint the moment his _professional respect_ for his _colleague_ began to feel like… more than that, but he can't, and Kay would say it doesn't matter. It's hard not to pay attention to her when she's in the room, and it's hard not to smile when he talks to her. It's hard not to smile just imagining it, and tries to hide his stupid grin at nothing behind his laptop, even though he's alone in the teachers' lounge.

The the door bursts open and the woman herself strides into the room. She stalks over to him and jabs a finger in his face.

"I know what you did."

His heart skips a beat and the smile goes away. What's she talking about? What does she know? Who told her?

"You tattled on me."

"I– what?" He lets out an unsteady breath. So she probably hasn't found him out. He can't decide whether or not that's a good thing.

"You told Draven about my black foam demo."

 _Her_ what _?_ "Jyn, I would never do that. I don't even know what you're–"

"It was me."

Jyn whirls to face Kay, who enters the lounge far too calmly and barely spares them a glance as he crosses to the microwave. Cassian turns his attention back to his laptop and hopes this doesn't escalate. For all Kay seems to want him to go for it with Jyn, he certainly doesn't help by starting fights with her.

"You had no right." Jyn approaches Kay as if to corner him with a glare that has made lesser men flinch.

Kay sniffs. "That demonstration violates several school safety policies, not to mention state and federal regulations concerning reaction conditions and waste disposal."

Cassian wishes for once, Kay would stop there.

But of course, he raises his chin and says, "It was clearly a thinly veiled outlet for your pyromaniacal tendencies."

" _Pyromaniacal?_ My demos are _learning instruments_ , you robot. I'm trying to make chemistry _fun_. You know, so they actually pay attention, instead of zoning out for an hour while you drone on about bounded and unbounded sets."

Kay sidesteps her and sits down next to Cassian as if this conversation is below him. "If my students 'zone out,' it's their own fault. And I would also like to point out that my midterm test average was four percentage points higher than yours."

"That's because half of my students can't figure out how to solve for _x_ in a simple kinetics equation. Which is something _you_ should be teaching them."

Kay refuses to dignify this with a response.

Jyn turns suddenly to Cassian, as if she expects him to say something. Feeling caught, he just shrugs and pulls out the chair on his other side. Maybe if she sits down with them, they can talk this out. Maybe he can apologize for Kay (for whatever that's worth), and maybe he can make her laugh.

She huffs. "No, thanks." She glares again at Kay. "This isn't over."

Kay doesn't even glance up as she storms out of the room. He shakes his head. "I will never understand what you see in her."

Cassian sighs and sits back in his chair, ignoring the sting of rejection when she leaves the room. "Really, Kay?" He has to know what this is doing to his chances with her.

"Chemical safety regulations are hardly suggestions. She can just show one of several hundred youtube videos of the same reaction."

"And you expect _Jyn_ to roll over and do that?"

Kay shrugs. "This school's fume hood hasn't been fully operational in decades. Now that Vice Principal Draven has been made aware, facilities will dismantle it before her materials come in. There's nothing she can do."

 

At the end of his next class period, his advanced students are doing AP test practice, and Cassian's mind wanders again. After Kay's first several complaints about Jyn's more unusual methods were dismissed by Principal Mothma, he made the rather unfortunate discovery that VP Draven could be a raging pedant when sufficiently motivated. It's caused Cassian nothing but grief, to suddenly find himself caught between his best friend, his direct superior, and Jyn, but he can't see how to disentangle himself.

"Mr. Andor?"

Cassian blinks. Most of his students are still working, but Rey is done early and is standing in front of his desk holding a manila envelope. "Yes?"

"As you may know, the junior class is conducting a Valentine's Day fundraiser. We're selling candy grams. For just three dollars, you can fill out a heart-shaped card for your valentine. I'll collect it from you on the morning of the thirteenth, and on the fourteenth it will be delivered along with a box of candy hearts to your sweetheart."

It's a well-rehearsed pitch and Cassian wonders idly how much time she spent practicing in the mirror. He gives her a strange look. "Aren't these only sold to other students?"

Rey nods. "Normally, yes. However, we are not _not_ allowed to sell to faculty members, and they remain a largely untapped market."

Cassian thinks Rey will go far in life.

He considers her offer. He likes to try and help students with their fundraisers, and he likes Rey. He had a plan to ask Jyn out by Valentine's day, but 100 dollars or no, he knows himself well enough to admit there's still decent chance he'll back out at the last minute. This, if nothing else, will really force his hand. Right?

He takes out his wallet. "Okay."

"Awesome." She hands him a blank heart-shaped card from her envelope, then lingers as he's putting it away. "Mr. Andor?"

"What?" Did he give her the wrong amount of money?

"Are you going to send it to Ms. Erso?"

"Excuse me?"

Rey's eyes widen. "Sorry! I'm so sorry, I just thought– you're always– never mind." She tucks her chin into her chest and fiddles with her envelope.

Cassian desperately wants to question her– he's always what?– but the bell rings and she disappears into the crowd of students turning in their test practice. He clears his throat and runs his fingers through his hair before standing up in front of the students still frantically scribbling in their blue books. "Okay, uh, time's up, so, um, turn in your books." He's stuttering like a student teacher in front of their first class, but his thoughts feel scattered and he suddenly can't focus on what's in front of him.

 

* * *

 

The moment is still stuck in his mind the next day. He's back in the teachers' lounge during a free period with a pile of honors US History exams left mostly unmarked as he stares into space and tries to decide whether Rey is actually psychic or if he's just super obvious. He's inclined to believe it's the latter, but that doesn't explain how Jyn remains _totally_ oblivious, to the point that she believes he would buy a valentine for someone else.

For the millionth time this week, he begins to second-guess himself. What if she doesn't notice because she doesn't _want_ to notice? What if this is her way of telling him she's not interested and never was?

The thought makes his chest ache and he clenches his fist when he remembers the bear locked in the bottom right drawer of his desk. Screw Kay's hundred dollars, this was a stupid idea. He never should've seriously considered this.

"Holy shit."

Cassian glances up to see the twitchy physics teacher, Bodhi Rook, looking out the window. "What?"

"Come over here."

Cassian puts down his pen and joins Bodhi. The teachers' lounge is on the second floor and looks over the courtyard outside the cafeteria. No one's eating lunch there now, but there's a crowd of students gathered around what looks like a ceramic pot secured on a metal stand over a large bucket of sand. He's confused until he notices Jyn step in front of them, holding a beaker of rust-colored powder in one hand and a sparkler in the other.

"Oh no." He can't decide whether to sprint downstairs to try and stop her or stay here and watch, because the way the students are looking at her, whatever she's got planned promises to be spectacular.

In the end, he can't look away, or keep his lips from twitching up as he watches Jyn pours the powder into the ceramic pot and hold up the sparkler like a magician presenting her next trick. They can't hear what she's saying, but the students look captivated as she sticks it in the powder and produces a box of matches.

Bodhi seems extremely calm, sipping from his coffee mug like it's no big deal, but Cassian leans forward in equal parts terror and fascination as she shoos the students a few more feet away from the contraption before lighting the sparkler and dancing backwards to join them. The spits and sparks and for 30 seconds and briefly, Cassian thinks that'll be it, but as it burns closer to the pot, the whole thing seems to explode. The entire pot is surrounded by bright yellow flames, and sparks spit out and bounce around on the concrete patio. He can almost hear the students' cries of excitement while Jyn stands to the side, looking very proud of herself.

Cassian's eyes go wide and he resists the urge to press his face against the window. What on earth just happened? How did she do that?

Bodhi laughs. "Ever seen that before?"

"What– what the hell was that?" The fire dies down as quickly as it began and Jyn approaches it with a set of tongs.

Bodhi's still grinning. "That, my friend, is the thermite demo. It produces molten iron as a product. That's what she's showing them now." He points to Jyn with his coffee mug, who's using the tongs to present a faintly glowing chunk of metal to the class. "It's famous for being violently exothermic. I can't believe she got permission to do it on school grounds."

Cassian freezes. He tears his eyes away from the courtyard. "Are you sure she got permission?"

"I mean, it's basically an explosion, why wouldn't she?"

Cassian remembers Jyn's words to Kay after he shut down her last demo, _This isn't over_. "Oh my God." He turns back to the window, where Jyn's dismissing the class early and dismantling the apparatus. She's almost done when she suddenly turns to look at someone just outside Cassian's view. Her face becomes very blank and she nods, then piles her equipment onto a cart and follows the person inside.

Cassian doesn't think he needs three guesses as to who that person is.

Bodhi's already moving. "Son of a bitch, Jyn." He puts down his coffee so fast it spills and he's sucking on his hand as he speed-walks out of the room.

Cassian watches him go, feeling caught (again). He'd like to follow Bodhi. In fact, he wants to take the utility stairway and beat Bodhi to Draven's office, then then convince Draven to give Jyn a pass.

But he doesn't. Jyn wouldn't like that. She doesn't need to be rescued. Besides, Draven won't fire her. Probably. They went through four chemistry teachers in three years before hiring her.

So why did Bodhi rush off? It occurs to him that he's not exactly sure of the nature of Jyn and Bodhi's relationship. He's vaguely aware they've known each other for a while, something about her father being Bodhi's undergraduate advisor, and they're close friends. But what if they're more than that?

He swallows and shifts his weight, still standing awkwardly by the window. The thought sits uncomfortably in his chest. 

 

* * *

 

The 13th rolls around and Cassian stares at the blank candy gram as the AP students file in for class. He doesn't know what to write anymore, suddenly wracked with uncertainty regarding her relationship status. He's tempted not to send it at all, but he reminds himself that there's still the possibility that he's reading this wrong and she's not with Bodhi at all. If he's careful, maybe he can use this to test the waters a bit, get a sense of how she'll respond to him. Worst case scenario, he can say it's just friendly.

He takes a deep breath and writes, _To: Jyn Erso_ and her classroom number. He hesitates and skips the prompt that says _From:_ to the pink line at the bottom. He remembers what Jyn said at the drugstore, _You can say 'Happy Valentine's Day' to anyone._ He scribbles the empty sentiment on the line and hands it to Rey before he can stop himself.

It feels terrible, like a lie, to send her something so… generic, but he can't risk anything more. He shakes his head. It's too late now, anyway.

Then he freezes in the middle of picking up the chalk, his Cold War lesson plan halfway to his face. _Shit._ He forgot to sign it.

 _Maybe that's a good thing_.

No, no, it's a terrible thing. Sending a valentine without signing it means you have something to hide, which means there are stakes, which means you _care_.

_Shit._

 

"I assume you are not going to be 100 dollars richer tomorrow," Kay says. He slides into the seat next to Cassian in the conference room, list of grievances typed in 12-point Times New Roman already out and ready for the faculty meeting.

Cassian fiddles with his pen and looks around. They're early– only a few other teachers have arrived, and they're sitting at the far end of the table. "It's complicated," he mutters. "She might have a boyfriend."

Kay considers this. "Not impossible– given her age, marital status, and appearance."

Cassian glares.

"But unlikely," Kay concludes. "Given her personality."

Cassian would like to respond to that, but doesn't get the chance before Kay starts ranting.

"I continue to be perplexed by your interest in this woman. Can you _believe_ she had the _audacity_ to ignite aluminum and iron oxide _on school grounds?_ Without prior approval from her superiors? And she got off with a slap on the wrist! Where's the discipline? Where's the _chain of command?_ There must be _order_ , we have to have _consequences_ …"

Cassian runs his hands through his hair and stops listening. He's still preoccupied with that stupid, unsigned candy gram. It's ridiculous, because there's no way she can know it's from him, but there's also no way he can admit it without admitting to all sorts of other things he's not sure she wants to hear.

Kay stops and seems to be waiting for a response.

"Sorry, what?"

"I said, do you _know_ this 'boyfriend' is not a fabrication? I have heard that women sometimes lie about such things."

"I… guess not." More people are arriving and Cassian hopes this conversation wraps up before anyone can sit close enough to hear them.

"Then I suggest you find out for certain."

"Kay, I can't just _do_ that."

"Why not?"

"Well– it's not–"

Someone sits in the seat his other side. "Not what?" Jyn rocks back in her chair, pencil between her teeth and red goggle marks around her eyes. "What're you two talking about?"

"Nothing," Cassian says.

"Valentine's Day," Kay says.

Jyn's eyebrows shoot up. "Really?"

Cassian really, really doesn't want Kay to answer her, but he's not sure what will come out if he tries to speak.

"I understand," Kay says. "That individuals often reserve this day for plans of a romantic nature with a significant other or others."

Jyn snorts. "Sure, that's one way of putting it."

"I believe it is customary for me to ask, as your co-worker, if you have any plans for Valentine's Day."

Cassian swallows. As much as he wants to slap Kay across the face, he's desperate for the answer. He pretends to be very busy jotting notes in his planner.

Jyn straightens in her chair and squares the corners of her file folders. "Like I've said before," she says. "Valentine's Day was invented by Hallmark to sell cards. I'm chaperoning the dance."

 _Really?_ Cassian's so surprised he almost says it out loud. He bites his tongue and jabs his pen harder into the pages. He's not even sure what he's writing anymore.

Luckily or unluckily, Vice Principal Organa enters at that moment to start the meeting and all chatter ceases. Cassian half-listens as she addresses Kay's various complaints, reviews the logistics of AP test administration, and sets a date for another meeting on course selection. It's horrifically boring, and his mind keeps circling back to Jyn and the dance.

Does this mean she definitely isn't with Bodhi? Or maybe she is but still hates Valentine's Day so much she chooses to fight the system by signing herself up for a singularly unromantic activity. He comes to the conclusion that there's only one way to find out and stops Leia at the end of the meeting as everyone else files out of the room.

"Hey, Leia?"

"What's up?" She snaps her file folder closed and tucks her pen behind her ear.

"I was wondering… if you needed any more chaperones for the dance tomorrow?"

Leia shakes her head. "Nope. I actually got enough volunteers this time. No need to sacrifice your Valentine's Day, Cassian."

"Right."

He can't quite hide his disappointment and Leia raises an eyebrow. "No hot date, Andor?"

"No…" There are so many ways to finish the sentence but he can't bring himself to say any of them, even in the empty conference room.

Leia takes pity on him, or doesn't have time to wait for him to come up with something. She shrugs. "I mean if you really want to, I suppose we could always use a pair of extra hands out there. I'll put your name on the list."

"Okay. Thanks."

She brushes past him and he stands there for another minute while he waits for his cheeks to feel less red.

 

* * *

 

Cassian spends the first half hour of the Valentine's Day dance sulking by the food table.

"Not romantic" is a generous way to describe it. The music's too loud, the DJ they can afford is _awful_ , and the writhing mass of students in the center of the gym makes the whole room smell like sweat and cheap fruit punch (not spiked– he checked).

Student council rustled up some disco lights that more or less set the mood and someone bought chains of paper hearts and strung them up along the walls, but neither of these things hide the fact that it's an excuse for high schoolers to grind up on each other and sneak off to make out in the abandoned hallways.

Cassian's beginning to regret this impulsive decision– already some of the other teachers have given him weird looks for volunteering at the last minute and he hasn't seen Jyn for more than a few minutes, back when they were helping unload the DJ's equipment. But she was on her phone and distracted, then left as soon as Bodhi asked her for help setting up tables for ticket collection. He's paranoid again about the accidentally-unsigned valentine. Did she figure out who it was from? Is she angry?

He wishes she would just tell him, if that was the case. He'd rather know so he can retreat quietly rather than wait in this horrifying limbo. He has too much time to think about this, bored out of his mind watching students make a mess of the snack table.

He takes the next possible opportunity to step into the hall, get a break from the flashing lights and overbearing music. His mind feels quieter almost immediately and he takes a deep breath. This was a bad idea. He couldn't talk to Jyn here, even if she wanted to talk to him.

He's about to find Leia and ask if he can go home– he wasn't supposed to be here, anyway– when he hears voices around the corner that stop him cold.

"What do you think?" says Jyn.

"Dunno," Bodhi says. "Seems like a normal valentine."

_Oh, fuck._

Jyn huffs, frustrated. "I didn't know _teachers_ could receive those candy-gram things."

Cassian feels sweat beading on his palms. He can't listen to this. God, why did they have to pick _this_ _place_ of all the hallways around the gym?

"Do you _know_ a teacher bought it?"

"I assumed– oh God, I certainly hope so." There's a pause. "No, no, this looks like an adult's handwriting. Right? Do any of your students write like that?"

There's a desperate edge to her voice and Bodhi laughs. "I guess not."

" _So?_ " she says again. "Do you recognize it? The handwriting?"

There's another pause. Cassian thinks he might have a heart attack.

"I don't think so," Bodhi says.

Cassian lets out a breath, not sure if he's relieved or disappointed.

He jumps when Jyn growls. "Shut your face."

"I didn't say anything." Cassian can _hear_ his shit-eating grin.

"Shut up," Jyn says again.

Bodhi just sings, " _You've got a secret admirer._ "

"I do not."

"Do too."

"Do not."

"Do too."

"Do _not_."

There's a smacking sound and Bodhi snickers. "You're blushing."

Jyn snorts. "Some friend you are. I thought you _wanted_ me to get laid."

Cassian freezes. _That's it_. That's his proof. _They're just friends. Just. Friends_. Christ, how much time has he wasted thinking about this? He wants to step into the hallway immediately and tell her everything, but stops himself. He's stopped listening, but she's still talking with Bodhi and he shouldn't interrupt. Or reveal the fact that he's been eavesdropping. So he slips back into the gym and waits, suddenly considerably cheered by the chains of paper hearts and store-brand fruit punch.

 

After what feels like an eternity, Jyn and Bodhi come back and drift off into separate clusters of chaperones. Cassian downs the last of his punch like it really _is_ spiked and takes a deep breath. He can feel his heart beating too fast, the arteries in his neck pressing on his throat. The lights are too dim to really do her justice, and he can only catch glimpses of the shine of her dress as the disco lights spin around the walls.

She's nodding her head and to the beat of the pop song coming to a close, silver earrings swaying by her neck. As he gets closer, he can see loose strands of hair curled behind her ears and he swallows as he imagines curling his fingers through them, guiding her jaw to his lips and…

She smiles when she sees him and it lights up her whole face and in that moment he thinks– if nothing else happens, if this is the most he gets tonight, that would be enough.

Then suddenly he's right next to her and the music's died down so he doesn't have to shout, "Happy Valentine's Day."

"I don't believe in Valentine's Day."

His lips twitch. "You know, for some people it's religious." Right on cue, the slow piano intro of Adele begins and she's still smiling, so he presses on, holds out his hand. "Dance with me?" He hopes the darkness hides the flush on his neck when it falls out of his mouth, unrehearsed. But he doesn't back down, and the thrill through his arm is worth it when she takes his hand.

"Then I suppose I should respect traditions."

They don't really dance– he doesn't actually know how, and she seems perfectly happy to sway in time to the song. He can see her lips moving to the words and he suddenly starts listening to them.

" _God only knows why it's taken me so long to let my doubts go. You're the only one that I want_."

The way they're standing, it looks like she's singing to him. When she runs out of lyrics she knows, she says, "You know, I got a candy gram today for that fundraiser thing." She's not looking right at him, staring just over his right shoulder.

He takes a shallow breath, tries to decide how to answer. He can see the edge of the cliff he's on, and how easy it would be to step off. At the last second, he pulls back. "Who was it from?"

Her lips pinch. "It wasn't signed."

"How mysterious," he murmurs.

"Bodhi says I've got a secret admirer," she says.

His brain is screaming at him, _It's me! I'm right here!_ But the words are stuck in his chest, because he can still feel the possibility that they'll ruin everything and he can't lose this feeling right now– of her arms around his neck and her waist underneath his hands.

She shakes her head and her eyes snap over to his and he's pinned, he can't look away if he wanted to. "Did you give that bear to your valentine, yet?"

"No." His voice is unsteady and he licks his lips. "Not yet."

"I didn't think you'd be here," she says. "I thought you'd be with her."

 _I am_. He can almost believe she sounds disappointed when she speaks about the girlfriend she thinks he has and the words almost pass his lips, but then the song ends and she drops her arms and steps away. He drops his hands and frowns at the way his shoulders already feel cold.

She nods vaguely at him, her body already halfway turned away. "Thanks, I guess."

He's aware of the students around them, whispering behind their hands and tittering. But she's leaving and his chest clenches and he can't watch her go, not yet. "Wait."

She stops, but then he's bumped by the rush of teenagers to get back to the dance floor when the dance music starts again. He moves quickly to the side and waits for her to follow. "Can we talk in the hallway?"

The confusion is back. "Okay."

"I'll meet you there in 2 minutes." He steps backward, calculating the time it'll take him to run back to his classroom. "Wait for me."

She sighs. "Okay."

He turns and sprints, throwing himself out the door of the gym and making a break for the history wing. He fumbles with the lock on the door to his classroom, winces at the clang of his desk when he pulls the drawer open too fast, then runs back to the gym.

He pauses before he turns the final corner, pushes his hair back into place and strokes the fur of the bear in case it's been mussed by the journey.

She's waiting, thank God, like she said she would, staring at the work of the sophomore art students decorating the walls.

"Jyn."

She turns, eyes flick suspiciously to the bear.

"I was just thinking…" He takes a deep breath. "That now would be a good time to give this to… to my valentine." It's terrible– probably the cheesiest, most ridiculous thing he's ever said, but he doesn't look away, and extends the fluffy white bear holding the silly _Be Mine_ heart. His heart beats faster than it did before he asked her to dance and the floor suddenly feels uncertain beneath him.

She doesn't move. "Cassian?"

"It's you," he clarifies. "It's for you."

She looks up at that. "You don't have to say that just because I was there when you bought it."

"I'm not." His hand is shaking, and the bear is in danger of falling to the floor, but he presses on. He can never go back from this. "It's really for you and I wanted to ask–" another deep breath, "to ask if you wanted to get dinner. Sometime. With me." He looks down at the bear again. "And, uh, since it's Valentine's Day, I got you this."

Finally, _finally_ , she steps forward to take it from him. Their fingers brush and almost unconsciously, he steps forward as well. She turns the bear over in her hands, then looks up at him, and he can see a smile at the edge of her lips.

He's just enjoying the sight of it, and not thinking much farther than this, so he's surprised when she pushes up on her toes and kisses him. He's not ready, and their teeth knock painfully together, but her lips taste like fruit punch and twizzlers, which might be his new favorite combination of flavors, and he leans into it as soon as he can.

It's soft and quick, there's an impish smile on her face when they separate. She says, "I have a secret admirer too, you know."

He meets her clever eyes and nods. "I think I can outdo him."

"Really?"

He nods. "'Happy Valentine's Day' is so generic."

The smile bursts onto her face again and he has to lean down again to kiss her one more time. It's the best feeling in the world, kissing her, and he doesn't think he will ever want to stop.

But he has to, when he hears the loud click of kitten heels on linoleum and whirls around to see Rey stopped stock-still in the middle of the hallway, Finn close behind her.

She stares at them for a moment, then breaks into victorious laughter. She whirls and drags Finn away again, but not before he hears her say, "I knew it!"

**Author's Note:**

> Ending Credits Music  
> "One and Only" - Adele
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it! 
> 
> Come say hi to me on [tumblr](https://cats-and-metersticks.tumblr.com/), where I'm cats-and-metersticks!


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